Some of Mobile Threats that Might Surprise You

It’s hard to imagine a world without cellphones. Whether it be a smartphone or a flip phone, these devices www.mcafee.com/activate download have truly shaped the late 20th century and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future www.mcafee.com/activate. But while users www.mcafee/activate have become accustomed to having almost everything they could ever want at fingertips length, cybercriminals were busy setting up shop. To trick unsuspecting users, cyber criminals have set up crafty mobile threats – some that users may not even be fully aware of. These sneaky cyberthreats include SMSishing, fake networks, malicious apps, and grayware, which have all grown in sophistication over time.  www.mcafee.com/activate product keyThis means users need to be equipped with the know-how to navigate the choppy waters that come with these smartphone-related cyberthreats. Let’s get started.

Watch out for SMSishing Hooks

If you use email, then you mcafee.com/activate product key are probably familiar with what phishing is. And while phishing is commonly executed through email and malicious links, there is a form of phishing that specifically targets mobile devices called. www.mcafee/activate This growing threat allows cybercriminals to utilize messaging apps to send unsuspecting users a SMSishing message. These messages serve one purpose www.mcafee.com/activate – to obtain personal information, such as logins and financial information. With that information, cybercriminals could impersonate www.mcafee.com/activate download the user www.mcafee.com/activate product key to access banking records or steal their identity.

While this threat was once a rarity, it’s rise in popularity is two-fold. The first aspect being that users have www.mcafee.com/activate been educated www.mcafee.com/activate download  to distrust www.mcafee/activate email messages and the second being the rise in mobile phone usage throughout the world. Although this threat shows no mcafee.com/activate product key sign of slowing down, there are ways to avoid a cybercriminal’s SMSishing hooks. Get started with these tips www.mcafee.com/activate product key:

1. Always double-check the message’s source. If you receive a text from your bank or credit card company, call the www.mcafee.com/activate product key organization directly to www.mcafee/activate ensure the message is legit.
2. Delete potential SMSishing Do not reply to or click on any links within a suspected malicious mcafee.com/activate product key text, as that could www.mcafee.com/activate lead to more SMSishing attempts bombarding your phone.
3. Invest in comprehensive mobile security. Adding an can not only help protect your device www.mcafee.com/activate product key www.mcafee.com/activate download but can also notify www.mcafee.com/activate you when a threat arises www.mcafee/activate.
   

Public Wi-Fi Woes  

Public and free Wi-Fi is practically everywhere nowadays, with some destinations even having city-wide Wi-Fi set up. But that Wi-Fi users are connecting www.mcafee.com/activate their mobile device to may not be the most secure, given cybercriminals can exploit weaknesses in these networks to intercept messages, login credentials, or other personal information. www.mcafee/activate Beyond www.mcafee.com/activate product key exploiting weaknesses, some cybercriminals take it a step further and create fake networks with generic names that trick unsuspecting users into connecting www.mcafee.com/activate download their devices. These networks are called For mcafee.com/activate product key help in spotting these imposters, there are few tricks the savvy user www.mcafee.com/activate can deploy to prevent an evil twin network from wreaking havoc on their mobile device:

1. Look for password-protected networks. As strange as it  www.mcafee.com/activate sounds, if you purposely www.mcafee.com/activate product key enter the incorrect password www.mcafee/activate but are still allowed mcafee.com/activate product key access, the network www.mcafee.com/activate download is most likely a fraud.
2. Pay attention to page load times. If the network you are using is very slow, it is more likely a cybercriminal is using mcafee.com/activate product key an unreliable www.mcafee.com/activate mobile hotspot to connect your mobile device to the web www.mcafee/activate.
3. Use a virtual private network or VPN. While you’re on-the-go and using public Wi-Fi, add an in the event you accidentally connect to www.mcafee/activate a malicious network. VPNs can encrypt www.mcafee.com/activate product key your online activity www.mcafee.com/activate and keep it  www.mcafee.com/activate download away from prying eyes mcafee.com/activate product key. 
   

Malicious Apps: Fake It till They Make It

Fake apps have become a rampant problem for Android and iPhone users alike. This is mainly in part due to  hiding in plain sight on legitimate sources, such as the Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store.  www.mcafee.com/activate After users download a faulty app, cybercriminals deploy malware that operates in the background of mobile devices which makes it difficult for users to  www.mcafee.com/activate product key realize anything is wrong. And while www.mcafee/activate users think they’ve just downloaded another run-of-the-mill app, the malware is hard at work obtaining www.mcafee.com/activate download personal data mcafee.com/activate product key.

In order to www.mcafee.com/activate product key keep sensitive information out of the hands of cybercriminals, here are a few things users can look for when they mcafee.com/activate product key www.mcafee.com/activateneed to determine www.mcafee/activate whether an app is fact or fiction: